FINAL FRONT COVER

In the final part of my front cover construction I added a number of sell lines and decided which three colours I would use throughout the magazine.
The final choice consisted of fuchsia, hot blue and bright orange. The reason for using these colours was because they were all bright and eye catching and so readers would be drawn to the magazine. These colours are mainly associated with younger people as they are vivid; older people are drawn to softer, more subtle colours. Knowing this, the colours I used are a good choice as I was sure the target audience I was aiming my magazine to would be able to relate to the magazine through the use of colours.
The sell lines on the front cover also were suited to the 12-17 age group. The reference to Underage Festival was a deliberate choice as teens under 18 would be the age group that would go to this event. The mode of address is rather informal, stark and simple to understand. The clarity makes it much easier for readers to relate to.
I chose an interview with Miley Cyrus because this is the type of artists the magazine will be focusing on. Similarly, by having the Spice Girls, the magazine automatically attracts a specific age group.

The final front cover, is very strong. The use of the plot of Lulu leaning forward, looking directly at the camera makes it feel as though she is looking at us and wants us to be included in what she is saying. The front cover gives off a range of key message- fun, sexy, girly and fresh! It is a very different magazine, offering a range of different ideas in one place.

Music Magazine- Front Cover (Step 3)

Step 3

The next step in making my front cover was to include the price. I decided that this would be the first issue of the magazine and so I planned on an introductory price of £1.50- cheaper than most music magazines; because of this, I put the price in an orange, circular shape so it was clearer for the readers to see. I enlarged the price so it stood out from the rest of the writing. The use of the colour orange meant that it was more eye catching and noticeable and so people would play attention making them more like to notice the buy the magazine.

I used the same font i used on the heading Segoe Script as it was clear and readable.

However, from the second issue onwards, I would raise the price to £2.50 so that it would be easier to afford the making of the magazine.

I then included on the front cover a reference to the main feature, It will be on the new upcoming star, Lulu. I changed the font here to Blackadder ITC- this is a much swirlier, girly font. The change in font allows the readers to differentiate the contents of the magazine from the main feature. The use of the words 'heat things up' is a pun on the magazine name and also connotes a funky, fun and saucy artist!

The last thing I did in the third step towards the making of the magazine was generating a barcode using the internet website, http://www.barcodesinc.com/. This is a key element in any magazine front cover.

Music Magazine- Front Cover (Step 1)

Step one

The First step in creating my music magazine was to find a photo that I would use to put on the front cover of the magazine. I took a number of samples with Louise wearing a range of diverse clothing, in a variety of poses. These are a few examples...

Having looked at the photos and having decided that I wanted my magazine to be aimed at girls aimed between 12-17, the photo below seemed perfect to have as my front cover. In this pose Louise looks playful and fun fitting in with the target audience. She is wearing a pretty, girly dress which would attract the younger girls in the target audience, however she maintains an air of sexiness which would appeal to the older girls.

Music Magazine- Questionnaire Analysis

When I was planning my magazine, I decided that I wanted to target girls aged 12-17. However to make sure my audience would be interested, I created a questionnaire so I could find out. This would also give me an indication as to what artists, features and music my target audience liked so I could include it in the magazine.

In the questionnaire, I asked general questions such as

1) - What is your favourite music genre? (E.g. Pop, Rock, Drum & Bass, Hip Hop etc)

________________________________________________________

2) - Who is your favourite band or artist?

________________________________________________________

3) - Where do you often listen to your music? (Please circle)

IPod

TV

Radio

Internet

Other

These types of questions allowed me to understand more about the music genre and the range of artists girls aged between 12-17 liked. I was also interested to know where they listened to their music so I could include features about websites to find good music or radio stations which have the best upcoming music etc.

I went on to ask more specific questions about the magazine I wanted to make, such as:

1) - If a magazine was titled ‘Hot’, what would this mean to you? (Please circle)

Gossip

Upcoming music

Film

Sex

Other

2) - If you were to buy a teen music magazine, what about the front cover would attract your attention? (Please circle)

The model on the cover being famous

The model on the cover being attractive

A famous musician

A free CD

Gig Listings

Other

3) - What fashion magazines do you read? (Please circle)

Glamour

Grazia

Vogue

I.D

4) - Do you think a music magazine combining fashion, gossip and celebs would be a good idea? (Please circle)

Yes

No

The answers I gained from these questions helped me along in the process of actually generating my magazine. I was able to come up with a good name for my magazine which attracts readers. I knew exactly what type of magazine I could make and what features etc I would include and what they could be about.

The questionnaire was a very major part in the making of my magazine as ultimately, my main aim was to make a magazine which would sell. The answers I gained from this research allowed me to make such a magazine. I was able to determine what information my readers would want to know about; I learned what music artists my target audience liked and I got a sense of how sophisticated I should make the writing within the media product.

If I were to do the questionnaire again, I would perhaps include a questionnaire bout what fashion and beauty magazines my target audience read so I could get some ideas from them as well.

Music Magazine- PLANNING

• The name of my magazine is 'HOT.' Hot suggests a new 'hot' act in the music scene. In this magazine a new 'hot' act will be featured every month It will explore modern, exciting sexy and up and coming artists.
• Colour of title writing: Hot pink- stand out from the page, eye catching
• Font: Arial (or another font which is block lettering)
• Black and white image of featured artist (Lulu) standing beside microphone
• Sell lines all in different shades of pink
• Aimed at girls aged 12-16
• Contents- colours: black, white, pink, purple
• Feature on Louise Adams- Singer and guitarist
• Feature page: photos of Lulu and an interview. Covering an imagined hot new act- Lulu.
• Target audience is girls 12-17 so the acts featured each month will appeal to that age group.
  
  
  

Learning how to use Photoshop

PHOTOSHOP

At the start of this project, I was very unsure about using Photoshop so I used tutorials from YouTube. This helped me gain a better understanding of how to use the program.

I learnt all about the LIQUIFY tool and tested it out! This tool slims larger people out so they look much smaller.

I found this picture of a large girl on the Internet and roughly tested out the liquify tool. It took me a while to work out how to make the lines on her body even and unfortunately I didn't do the face very well, however this is how the picture came out ....

I visited a number of tutorials about all sorts of things on Photoshop and they really helped me in the making of my magazine. I'm very glad I watched them as now I have a much better understanding of the program.

Music Magazine- FRONT COVER DECONSTRUCTION

SMASH HITS

Smash Hits magazine was established in 1978 and filled a huge gap in the music magazine market. The magazine, unlike Mojo, NME and the Clash was aimed at young teenage girls between the ages of 12-16. The magazine followed the world of popular music and each month printed their findings within the pages of the magazine.

The front cover image on the left is clearly very dated however we can still tell the age age group the magazine is aimed at.

The marthead 'SMASH HITS' is written in large white in front of a beg red, rectangular box. This allows the title to stand out from the rest of the front cover image. The colours used on the front cover are primary and basic. At the top of the front cover, the navy blue banner informs the readers that S Club will be featured in the issue, and alongside that, a small photograph of the band is printed on the top right hand side of the front cover.

The popular children's band, Steps and artist Britney Spears are the focus of this week's issue. All the stars are pulling childish and funny faces to appeal to the target audience. Each member of Steps is holding a different coloured microphone. (children and young teenage girls are attracted to bright colours)

The brightly coloured 'Aargh!' is very eye catching and once again, child-like. The use of the color yellow makes the words stand out.

At the bottom of the cover, again printed in a navy blue banner, we are given an insight to what will be featured in the magazine, 'Songwords cards....posters', all things which attract a young female audience.

Unfortunately, Smash Hits printed it's final issue in 2006 due to its declining sales leaving a large gap in the market for a more modern, grown up version of this classic girl's music magazine.

Music Magazine- FRONT COVER DECONSTRUCTION

MOJO

Mojo music magazine uses the same colours as NME however the final effect of the front cover is extremely different.

There are a lot more sell lines on this magazine, giving us more of an insight as to what the features inside will be about.

The medium shot black and white photo of Syd Barret from Pink Floyd will attract the people who enjoy this type of music. His eyes are directly facing the people who will pick up the magazine, drawing us in.

The main features are written in capitalised red, bold lettering which is very eye catching. Beneath these sell lines are a short summary of what the features consist of.

The free CD is a very good selling technique as people would be even more encouraged to buy the magazine. The cover of the CD uses colours which as in accordance to the rest of the magazine.

The alliteration of 'Dylan blasts back' is very evocative as it draws the readers attention more closely to what is being said. The word 'blasts' is onomatopoeic as the word sounds like what is being described. This technique adds excitement to the words.

Mojo's circulation is considerably more than Clash's, distributing 100,507 copier per issue.

Mojo has also been around much longer than the Clash, starting out in November 1993.

Music Magazine- FRONT COVER DECONSTRUCTION

CLASH

Clash music magazine is a lot simpler compared to NME. The title of the magazine is written in white causing it to stand out and catch the readers attention. The symmetry between the 'a' and the 's' is very clever. It's a very small change however is very effective in making the title unique.

Contrasting from the front cover picture of NME, Clash only has one coverline- an extreme close up of the artist Jay-Z. His eyes are directly focused on us again, drawing us in. Beneath his image in large gold lettering, his name, 'JAY-Z' is written. the sell lines refer to him as 'The world's biggest rap star'. This would automatically attract a particular target audience- people who enjoy rap music- and would therefore sell to these people.

The front cover is very plain however is of a very high standard. There are hardly any sell lines. Perhaps the picture of Jay-Z is relied on to sell the magazine as he is a very successful and well known music artist.

Clash magazine has a circulation of around 40,000.

The target audience for Clash are mainly boys aged between 16-25. It is a very modern magazine with its own website page giving dates and venues for up and coming gigs.

Clash's first issue hit the shelves in 2004.

Music Magazine- FRONT COVER DECONSTRUCTION

NME

This is the latest issue on the 'NME' music magazine. This issue focuses on the '10 years in music' in accordance with the new year.

The front cover is highly effective particularly due to the choice of colours. The colour red used to write NME was a good choice as it makes the heading stand out as it contrasts with the black and white used throughout the rest of the front cover. The large number '10' printed in the middle of the page refers to two thing: the number of years of music the magazine is focusing on and the year in which we are in now-2010.

The alternating colours used to list a few of the artists that will be mentioned in the magazine keeps our eyes drawn to the writing and encourages us to read further.

Most magazines have just one image on the cover of their magazine, however as this issue focuses on many artists and on a whole decade of music, they have created a collage effect. This is highly effective as it allows the readers to see what kind of bands and artists will be featured in the magazine. The black and white photos are very classy and sleek and makes the magazine look like more of a 'special' issue as opposed to an every day one.

Research shows that the target audience for NME is men aged between 17 and 30.

The alliteration of 'special souvenir issue' draws our attention to what is being said and is more memorable and so sticks in our minds.
The cropping of all the images is significant as only the faces of the artists are being shown. This is a good technique as it is much easier for the readers to see what artists are being featured in this issue.

NME's circulation is roughly the same as the Clash's with 40,948 copies of the magazine being distributed each month.

NME has been round the longest out of the three magazines as it started out on the 7th March 1952.